Atmosphere generating apparatus



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ATMOSPHERE GENERATING APPARATUS Filed July so, 1962 e sheets-sheet 4 6Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 30, 1962 v 'il l All Aug. 31, 1965 R. l. RANUMATMOSPHERE GENERATING APPARATUS 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed July 30, 1962United States Patent O i3,203,770 ATMOSPHERE GENERAIENG APPARATUS? RolfI. Ranum, St. Joseph, Mich., assigner to Whirlpool `Corporation, aDelaware corporation Filed lilly 30, 1962, Ser. No. 213,397 16 Claims.(Cl. 2li- 281) This invention relates to an apparatus for producing anatmosphere suitable for preserving or conditioning food and the likeparticularly for long periods of time and relates specifically to thecatalytic burner portion of the apparatus.

As is explained in the copending application of K. Bedrosian and l. R.C. Brown Serial No. 149,731, tiled November 2, 1961, now abandoned afterfiling continuation-in-part Patents Nos. 3, 102,778 and 3,102,780, andassigned to a common assignee, stored animal and vegetable products suchas food products immediately begin to deteriorate. As is well known,this deterioration can be markedly slowed if these products arerefrigerated. The deterioration on storage can be remarkably furtherdelayed if the products are stored in a controlled atmosphere containinga reduced amount of Oxygen such as from 2-10%, not more than about 13%carbon dioxide and the remainder inert gases. lt is also necessary thatharmful gases such as oxides of nitrogen be substantially absent asthese tend to deteriorate the products.

The above copending patents also disclose apparatus and method forgenerating such an atmosphere by the catalytic combustion of a gaseoushydrocarbon fuel in the p esence of air and at a temperature sulicientlylow that the production of substantial amounts of oxides of nitrogen isavoided. As is explained here, the combustion is maintained at atemperature not greater than about 2000 F. in order to produce such anatmosphere. The combustion reduces the amount of oxygen and the amountof carbon dioxide is controlled by providing means for removing carbondioxide when necessary.

The invention here is concerned specifically with the apparatus orgenerator for generating such an atmosphere by burning a gaseoushydrocarbon fuel in the presence of air or other source of oxygen.

One of the features of this invention therefore is to provide animproved apparatus including a catalytic burner or generator forgenerating a combustion products atmosphere suitable for preserving orconditioning food.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description of certain embodiments of the invention taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings. Of the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a semi-diagrammatic view of an apparatus embodying theinvention.

FGURE 2 is a semi-diagrammatic view or" a wiring diagram for theapparatus or system of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view of a second embodiment of acatalytic burner and associated condenser for generating the controllerpreserving atmosphere.

FlGURE 4 is a plan view of the burner with the upper closure memberremoved and with the supporting rods which are beneath the screen shownin solid lines.

FGURE 5 is a side elevational view of the enclosing frame and associatedheaders of the burner.

FlGURE 6 is a sectional view taken substantially along line 6-6 of FGURE4 and with a set of lower openings shown in phantom.

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantiallyalong line 7--7 of FIGURE 4.

FiGURE 8 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantiallyalong line 8 8 of FIGURE 4.

FGURE. 9 is an enlarged vertical sectional view talen substantiallyalong line 99 of FIGURE 4.

dld Patented Aug. 3l, i965 ice FIGURE l() is a reduced plan View of thesupporting screen oi FlGURE 4.

FiGURE l1 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially along line11-11 of FGURE 10.

FlGURE 12 is a plan view of the top closure member of the catalyticburner.

FIGURE 13 is a side elevational view of the member of FlGURE 12.

FEC-URE 14 is a portion of the semi-diagrammatic wiring diagram ofFIGURE 2, with certain modifications thereto.

The accompanying drawings disclose, in part semidiagrammatically, asystem or apparatus for generating an atmosphere with controlled amountsof carbon dioxide, oxygen and inert gases and eliminating anysubstantial amounts of gases such as oxides of nitrogen that would beharmful to the products being stored. For an easier understanding of theinvention FIGURES 1 and 2 resent the elements of the apparatus and thecontrols semi-diagrammatically as the elements are associated with eachother. The remaining figures of the accompanying drawings disclose ingreater detail alternate embodiments of certain of these elements.

FlGURlE 1 discloses an atmosphere generating system which includes acatalytic burner Z0 supplied with air by a blower 2i. and withhydrocarbon gas by a gas line 22. The products of combustion from theburner 2li flow through a condenser 23 connected to the burner forcooling and for removal of moisture from the gaseous cornbustionproducts. The condenser 23 is connected by means of a pipe 24 to anadsorber chamber 25 in which is located an adsorber bed 26 that ispreferably activated carbon for removing carbon dioxide from gases byselective and reversible adsorption. The adsorber chamber may beconnected as desired and as described in greater detail hereinafter witha storage chamber 27 shown diagrammatically in FlGURE 1 in which foodproducts may be stored for long periods of time.

Connected to the gas supply line 22 is a gas switch 23 and the ilow ofgas through the line 22 is controlled by a pair of solenoid operated gasvalves 29 and 30 arranged in series. Gas from the line 22 also ilowsthrough an airgas balancing regulator 31 and thro-ugh a gas line 32containing an adjustable gas orifice 33 for regulating the gas supply.

Air is supplied by means of a pipe 34 which connects to a main air pipe35 leading -frora the motor operated air blower 21. The air pipe 34 andthe gas line 32 join at the region of the gas orifice 33 for flowthrough an air-gas mixing line 36 into the catalytic burner 2t?. The airflow through the pipe 34 and thus into the line 36 is controlled by .anadjustable air orifice 37. v

A s'naller air line 38 leads from the air pipe 34 in front of theadjustable orifice S7. One branch 39 of this air line 3S goes to thebalancing regulator 31 `and another branch it? connects with `an airswitch 41 and safety switch 42.

The pipe 24 that conveys the products of combustion from the burner 2t?is connected to a pipe 43 which has one end connected by means of atwo-way Valve 44 to a purge outlet pipe 45 and to a pipe 46 leading -tothe adsorber chamber 25 on one side of the adsorber .bed 26. Theopposite side of the adsorber chamber 25 is connected by Away ot a Valve47 to a pipe 4S which is connected by way of a two-way Valve 49 to theabove-mentioned pipe 43 and to a pipe Sil which connects by way of atwo-way valve 51 to a pipe S2 leading to the storage chamber 27 :and apipe S3 which connects to the purge outlet pipe 45. Also connected tothe adsorber chamber 25 on the same side thereof as the valve 47 is apipe 54 which is c011- nected by way of a two-way valve 55 to a by-passpipe S6 and to the outlet of the air pipe 3S from the blower 21.

The valves 44, 47, 49, 51 and 55 each function 4in two positions tocontrol the ilow of air and generated atmosphere. In each valve theenergized position is shown in a broken line and the de-energizedposition in a solid line. Thus, as is shown in FIGURE 1, de-energizedvalve 44 blocks the outlet into pipe 45. De-energized valve 47 openspipe 4S to the top of the adsorber chamber De-energized valve 49 blocksentry to both pipes 43 and 50 from pipe 43. 13e-energized valve 51blocks access to pipe 52 and thus to chamber 27 from pipe 50.De-energized valve 55 blocks access to pipe 54 from pipes 35 and 56.When each of these valves is energized the dotted line position isassumed and the pipe connections are obvious.

lF or various cooling purposes including maintaining the temperature inthe catalytic burner 20 suihciently low as to prevent substantialoxidation of nitrogen in the air during combustion, and for heating airfrom blower 21, as required, by using the heat from the water after ithas been heated by cooling the burner, there is provided cooling waterthrough a water line 57. This water line is provided with a manual ValveS and a modulating control valve 59. The Water line 57 beyond the valves53 and 59 connects to the cooling water passage o0 of the condenser 23.From here a water line 61 which is provided with a condenser thermostat62 connects to the top closure member 63 containing cooling passages asdescribed in greater detail hereinafter. From this top closure member 63a water line 64 passes to an air heater 65 in which ail' delivered by ablower 21 is heated by the heat of water from the pipe 64, as may berequired. An -air heater outlet pipe 66 leads to the coolant passages ofa bottom closure membe-r 67 on the burner 20. From the bottom closuremember 67 an outlet pipe 68 leads through an enlarged pipe section 69 toa drain pipe 70. Located in this enlarged section 69 is the feelerportion 71 of the thermostat which controls the modulating water valve59. Thus the volume How of the cooling medium or water is coutrolled indirect relationship to the temperature of the cooling medium leaving theapparatus. Located in the drain pipe 70 -is a water control thermostat72 The drain pipe 70 not only carries away the cooling water from theburner and condenser but also carries away condensate from the condenser23 by way of a trap pipe 73 and a second trap pipe 74.

In order to initiate ignition, the bottom of the catalytic burner isprovided with a pair of spark plugs 75. Among the controls for theburner are a llashback sensor 76 that communicates with the top of theburner and the outlet of air-gas mixing line 36, an inlet sensor 77 alsocommunicating with the top of the burner and an outlet sensor 78communicating with the bottom of the burner.

-FIGURE 2 illustrates the Wiring diagram of the atmosphere generatingsystem of FIGURE 1 and includes some controls and switches that are notshown in FIGURE l.

The power supply to the system is the conventional 115 volt 60 cyclealternating 4current supplied through lines 79 and 80. ln yline 79 thereare connected in series a main on-ollc toggle control switch 81, fuseS2, condenser thermostat 62, water control thermostat '72 and safetyswtich 42. The condenser thermostat 62 is normally closed and isadjusted to open at a predetermined temperature such as 135 F. in orderto interrupt the circuit when water leaving the condenser is in excessof this temperature. yNVater control thermostat 72 is a normally closedthermostat set to open at a predetermined temperature such as i135 F.This thermostat opens when water leaving the burner exceeds this presettemperature. Safety switch 42 is normally closed at an air pressure lessthan a predetermined maximum, such as 4.5 inches of water, and will openat higher pressuers to interrupt the circuit. This switch providesprotection against excessively high pressures in air lline 34 andespecially against a defective diaphragm (not shown) in the balancingregulator 31. Each of switches 62, 72 and 42 is a manually reset switch.

Also connected in series with the previously mentioned Cil series ofswitches 81, 62, 72 and 42 are air switch 41, gas `switch 2S, flashbacksensor switch 76 and on-otl switch 83 for the burner. Air switch 41 isnormally open but closes when the blower 21 develops sullicient pressureto apply a predetermined minimum such as 3.3 inches of water to the airswitch 41. Gas switch 28 is normally open but closes .at a predeterminedminimum pressure such as 5.5 inches of water in the gas supply line 22.The flashback sensor switch 76 is normally closed with its sensormounted just above the catalyst bed wit-hin the `burner 20 as explainedlater and is set to open at a predetermined excessive temperature suchas SOO F.

The side of burner switch 83 opposite switch 76 is connected to a delayrelay 84. Within this relay S4 is an electric resistance heater 85 whichis connected by wire 86 to A C. line 30. Also within the delay relay 84is a normally open switch 87 which is connected by Wire 38 to a terminalon a conventional control 89. Outlet sensor thermostat switch 78 is alsoconnected to the control 89 and has its bulb or feeler located directlybeneath the catalyst bed in burner 20 as illustrated diagrammatically inFIGURE 1.

As can be seen in FIGURE 2, control 89 has terminals marked 1, 2, 3 and4 in a set and a second set of terminals marked T, FD-T and FD. Theswitch 78 which is normally open is connected between the terminals FDand FD-T. The terminal T is connected to terminal FD-T.

Control S9 is a standard ignition control system for oil or gas burnersthat are readily available commercially. It functions to connectterminal 1 to terminals 3 and 4, as illustrated by the broken lines inFIGURE 2, for a predetermined period of time. Upon the expiration of thepredetermined period, terminal 1 will automatically be disconnected fromterminals 3 and 4 unless switch 78 has closed. If switch 78 closesbefore the expiration of the predetermined time interval, terminal 1 isdisconnected from terminal 4 but remains connected to terminal 3.

Connected from terminal 3 of the control 89 are the two gas valves 29and 30 by way of a line 90. The two gas valves 29 and 30 have operatingsolenoids, as illustrated, connected in parallel. The other sides of thesolenoids of the valves 29 and 30 are connected by wire 91 to the A.C.supply line 80.

From terminal 4 of control 89 there is connected by wire 92 a pair oftransformers 93 having secondary windings 94 each of which has one sidegrounded, as indicated, and the other side connected to a spark plug 75.The wire 92 connects to one side of the primary windings of thetransformers and the other side is connected by wire 95 to the A.C. line80.

Also connected between the line 80 and wire 96 which connects switches41 and 42 is a motor 97 of the blower 21.

Also connected to wire 95 is a power relay 98 which includes anoperating coil 99 and a pair of ganged switches 100 and 101 connectedtogether by a linkage 129. The other side of coil 99 is connected bymeans of Wire 102 to the cold terminal 103 of inlet sensor 77. Thissensor includes in addition to the cold terminal 103, a hot terminal 106and a movable switch 104 connected by Wire 105 to A. C. line 80. Thefeeler or temperature sensitive portion of the inlet sensor 77 ismounted just above the catalyst bed in burner 20 and switch 104 movesfrom the cold terminal 103 to the hot terminal 106 at a predeterminedtemperature such as about 800 F. Connected from the hot terminal 106 byway of wire 107 is a signal light 108 and a signal receptacle 109. Theseare in parallel and are connected to wire 96. A test switch 110 is alsoconnected between the wires 102 and 107. The test switch 110 is used inthe customary way to test the equipment when desired. The signalreceptacle 109 may be used to connect a remote signal device asrequired.

Switch 100 within the power relay 98 is connected by wire 111 to theconnection between air switch 41 and gas switch 28. The normally closedterminal 112 of switch 18h is connected by wire 113 to timer motor 114ithe other side of which is connected to A.C. line 80. The normally openterminal 115 of switch 19d is connected to the normally open terminal115 of switch 101 by a wire 117.

The tired end of switch 101 is connected by way of Wire 118 to theoperating solenoid 119 of valve 49, solenoid 12@ of valve 44 andsolenoid 121 of valve 47. These solenoids are in parallel and theirother ends are connected to A.C. line 80. The normally closed terminal122 of switch 161 is connected by way of line 123 to the ysolenoid 12eof valve 55'. Terminal 122 -is also connected by way of a normally opentimer switch 127 and wire 125 to the solenoid 126 ot valve 51. Thesolenoids 124 and 126 also have their opposite sides connected to A.C.line Si?. A second normally open timer switch 12S is connected from thewire 113 to wire 125 between timer switch 127 and solenoid 126. Timerswtiches 127 and 128 are operated at predetermined times by theenergization of timer motor 114.

The operation of the apparatus as illustrated in 5TG- URES l and 2 is asfollows: When gas is supplied at suilicient pressure in line 22 andwater at suiiicient pressure and temperature in line 57, the apparatusmay be energized by closing the main switch at 81. Power is thensupplied by way ot line 79 through closed switch 81, fuse 2, closedwater condenser thermostat switch 62, closed water control switch 72.and closed safety switch d2. This therefore connects power from line 79to one side of the air switch 41 and to the blower motor 97 and the coil99 of power relay 98 by way of line 96. The power relay 93 isinmediately enerized causing switches 1li@ and 191 to move to the leftby reason of their common linkage 129 thereby contacting the switches1150 and 1111 with ixed terminals 115 and 116, respectively. This is thenormally open position of the switches and these two contacts areconnected by a wire 117. The blower 21 operated by the motor 97 beginsto run to supply air by way of pipes 35 and 34 to the burner 29. As soonas the air pressure reaches a minimum such as 3.3 inches or water it issensed by air switch 41 and the switch thereupon closes. This suppliespower by way of wire 111, switch 19t?, wire 117, switch 191 and wire 118to solenoids 119 of valve 49, 12) of valve ifi and 1.21 of valve 47 toline S6, thereby operating these Valves. This moves the operatingportions of the valves to the dotted line positions of FIGURE l. Assolenoid 124 or" valve 55 remains de-energized it is in the solid lineposition of FIGURE l. The valve 51 is similarly die-energized so that itis in the solid line position. With this arrangement the gases comingfrom the burner Ztl flow through the pipes 24, and 43, valve 49, pipe5d, valve 51 and pipe 53 into the purge outlet line 45. They thusby-pass the adsorber and are blocked from entering the storage chamber27 by valve 51.

During this supply of power, power is also provided to the gas switch 2Swhich is closed so long as there is a minimum gas pressure, for exampleat least 5.5 inches of water pressure. Since the burner has not yet beentired, the ilashback sensor 76 is closed and then as long as the burnertoggle switch S3 is manually closed power is delivered to the heater S5of delay relay S4, After a p edetermined time interval, such as secondsin the present embodiment, switch S7 closes and thereby supplies powerthrough wire to terminal 1 of control 89. Since the outlet sensor 78likewise has not yet sensed any tem erature rise in the burner, terminal1 is connected to terminals 3 and l oi the control, as indicated inlilG- URE. 2. This serves to power the solenoids of gas valves 29 and 3Qand to open these valves to supply gas to the burner. The powerconnection through terminal 4 of control 29 also energizes the two sparkplugs 75 through the transformers 93. As soon as the sparks are producedin the lower portion of the burner ignition of the gas takes place.Because of the action of the catalyst in the burner burning thereuponmoves into the catalyst bed described in more detail hereinafter.

As soon as the outlet sensor 7S senses a predetermined minimumtemperature, about 700 F. in the Ipresent embodiment, it closes therebycausing control S9 to disconnect terminal 1 from terminal 4 only,opening the circuit to the transformers 93 and thus stopping theoperation of the spark plugs In this embodiment, this takes less than 45seconds. Control 89 which is a conventional commercial control is presetso that if the outlet sensor switch 7S does not close in approximately45 seconds termin-a1 1 will be disconnected from both terminals 3 and 4,shutting oft not only the ignition circuit but also the gas supply byde-energizing gas valves 29 and 3i).

Gas continues to burn catalytioally within burner 20 with the productsof combustion passing to the purge outlet 45 by way ol' valves 459 and51 in the manner previously described. After about l5 minutes warm-uptime, the inlet sensor 77 reaches -a predetermined temperature, hereexemplilied as 800 F. This is the ternperature above the catalyst bed ofburner 26 and signiiies a normal operation. As soon as this temperaturehas been reached the switch 164- moves from the cold terminal 103 tocontact the hot terminal 106. This disconnects the operating coil 99 ofthe power relay 93 and turns on the signal light 198 to show that theburner is operating.

This cle-energizing of the power relay 98 causes switches 1S@ and 191.to move back to their normally closed positions as shown in FIGURE 2.This provides power to the timer motor 114 by way of terminal 112. Thetimer switch 123 controlled by the timer motor 114 is preset to beclosed at this instant so that solenoid 126 of valve 51 is energized tomove it to the dotted line position of FIGURE l. in the meantimesolenoids 119, 12? and 121 had been ile-energized when power relayswitch 161 moved back to its terminal 122 as previously described. Underthese conditions, here identiiied as condition A, the products otcombustion from the exit pipe 2d flow through the lower end of pipe 43,valve 44 and pipe 46 into the bottom of absorber chamber 25. Prom here,they liow up through the absorber bed 26 where carbon dioxide isadsorbed and the gases then iiow Iby way oi valve 47, pipe 48, valve 49,pipe Si?, valve 51 and pipe 52 1into the storage chamber 27. The timeris so constructed that this condition prevails .for la predeterminedperiod of time, for example 2l minutes.

After the 2l minutes of this condition A timer switch 127 is closed andthis energizes soleno-ids 124, 119, 120 and 121 of valves 55, 49, 44 and47, respectively, with solenoid 126 of valve 51 remaining energized. Asall valves .are energized they are moved to the dotted line positions ofFIGURE l. This is identified here as condit-ion B.

Under condition B the products of combustion from the burner 2li andcondenser 23 pass through the pipe 24,

pipe 43, valve 49, pipe 5t?, valve 51 and pipe 52 to the storage chamber27. At the same time healed air from the yblower 21 passes by way ofpipe 35, valve 55' and pipe 54 through the adsorber bed 2e and out pipe46, valve .and purge outlet pipe 45. This condition which lasts for apredetermined time, here exemplified as 3 minutes, removes adsorbedcarbon dioxide from the adsorber bed.

At .the end of condition B timer control switch 128 then opens and thisde-energizes all tive of the valves so that they all move to the solidline positions of FlG- URE l. This condition, here identiiied ascondition C, lasts approximately 3 minutes during which the products ofcombustion pass by way of the pipe 24, pipe 43, valve @lli and pipe 46through the adsorber bed 26 and by way of valve It?, pipe 43, valve 49,pipe Sil, valve S1 and pipe 53 to ythe purge outlet pipe 45. This causesthe products of combustion to sweep the adsorber bed 26 clear of airwhich collected in the bed and the connecting pipes during the previousregeneration cycle (condition E). During this 3 minute period of purge(condition C) timer switch 127 is also opened by the timer.

At the end of the 3 minute purge (condition C) the timer again hasadvanced to close timer switch 12S to again energize solenoid 125 or"valve 51 and condition A is initiated again. The successive conditionsA, B and C constitute a single cycle and the cycles are repeatedcontinuously to supply the desired atmosphere to the storage chamber 27.During conditions A and B the percentage of carbon dioxide under eachcondition is different. However, the atmospheres blend in chamber 27 toprovide an over-all relatively constant atmosphere. During these cyclesthe products of combustion are fed through the adsorber bed 26 incondition A to strip carbon dioxide from the combustion productsatmosphere. Then the bed is regenerated, purged of air, which containsoxygen, and then returned to the beginning of condition A. During theserepeating cycles the burner continues to burn, the ignition circuit isnot used again, the power relay 9S is not used again and the delay relay:.4 is not used. again.

Under some storage conditions in storage chamber 27, such as thoseconditions requiring extremely low concentrations of carbon dioxide,condition B may be altered as will now be described. This alteredcondition, here identified as condition B', is obtained by modifyingsome of the connections as shown in FIGURE 14. Here, timer switch 127 isshown as a double-pole switch having two terminals 127a and 127b. Toachieve condition B', wire i125 is disconnected from the top of solenoid126 and a new wire 125a connects the top of solenoid 125 to otherterminal 127i: of timer switch 127. All other wiring connections remainunchanged. Thus, when the power relay 93 is de-energized and timerswitch 12S is preset to be closed at this instant as has been described,solenoid 126 of valve 51 is now energized by way of timer switch 12S,wire `125, timer switch 1.27 through terminal =12'7a, wire 125er', andsolenoid 126 to line S0. Condition A will therefore remain unchanged.However, after the 2l minutes of condition A, timer switch 127 now movesfrom terminal 127a to terminal 127b, thereby energizing solenoids 124,110, 120 yand 121 of valves 5S, 49, 44 and 47, respectively, but thisaction de-energizes solenoid 126 of valve 51. This provides the alteredcondition B'.

Under condition B', the products of combustion now pass through the pipe24, pipe 43, energized valve 49, pipe 50 and de-energized valve 51 tothe pipe S3 and out the purge outlet pipe 45. Of course, during thisaltered condition B', heated air passes through the adsorber bed 26 andout the purge outlet pipe 45 in the same manner as in condition B. lthas been determined that this altered condition B' also lastsapproximately 3 minutes.

Other storage conditions require an atmosphere within storage chamber 27comprising a relatively low percentage of carbon dioxide and arelatively higher percentage of oxygen. This is achieved electrically byconnecting wire 1250 from solenoid 126 to terminal 127e of timer switch127 and by shorting timer switch 12S with a jumper wire 128e, as showndotted in FIGURE 14. These connections establish that the previouslydescribed conditions A and B' remain unchanged, but condition C is nowaltered (condition C) to provide that solenoid 126 of valve 51 becomesre-energized by timer switch 127 returning to terminal 12711 at or nearthe start of this time period for condition C This permits the productsof combustion to pass from pipe 24 through pipe 43, valve 44, pipe 46the adsorber bed 26, valve 47 pipe 48, valve 49, pipe 50, now energizedvalve 51 and pipe 52 to storage chamber 27 during the purge operation,which substantially increases the amount of oxygen directed to thestorage chamber 27.

Yet other storage conditions require an atmosphere within storagechamber 27 comprising a relatively high percentage of carbon dioxide anda relatively high percentage of oxygen. This is achieved electrically byconnecting solenoid 126 of valve 51 as shown in FIGURE 2, and byshorting timer switch 123 with jumper wire 128e as shown in FGURE 14.lere, conditions A and B are unchanged, and condition C' now exists inwhich the products of combustion pass through adsorber bed 26 to purgethe adsorber and then are passed to the storage room.

The system as illustrated in FGURES 1 and 2 contains a number of safetyfeatures to protect the system and to protect the products stored withinthe chamber 27. Thus, it the water supplied at pipe S7 should fail or ifthe water should be too warm the water condenser thermostat 62 opens(at, for example, 135 F.) to shut oh? the apparatus. This is a manuallyreset switch requiring the operator to manually close it to reinitiatethe cycle. 1f the water leaving the burner 20 as sensed by the watercontrol thermostat 72 is too hot (for example, above 1350 F.) the watercontrol thermostat 72 opens also shutting oit the apparatus. Thiscondition could exist if the incoming water supply tailed or if thewater was too hot, and it also could exist if any bloei:- age occurredin the various water passages associated with the condenser, burner andair heater. This also is a manually reset switch again requiring manualclosing by the operator. 1f the air pressure in the system andespecially in the air-gas regulator 31 is excessive (for example, above4.5 inches of water) the safety switch 42 will open also shutting downthe apparatus. This again must be manually reset by the operator.

lf tor some reason air pressure in the system supplied by the blower 21falls below a minimum value (for example 3.3 inches of water) air switch41 opens shutting ol the power to the gas solenoid valves 29 and 30 butpermitting the blower motor Yi to continue to run.

When air switch 41 opens, it also interrupts the circuit to cle-energizesolenoids 119, 120, 121, 124 and 126 and valves 44, 47, 49, S1 and 55.The products of combustion may now contain undesirable elements and areexhausted through pipes 24 and 43, valve 44, pipe 46, adsorber chambe;`25, valve 47, pipe 48, valve 49, pipe 50, valve 51 and pipe 53 to pipe45. With the gas supply shut oil and the blower still operating, theburner will rapidly cool and switch 104 of inlet sensor 77 will movefrom hot terminal 106 to cold terminal 103. This opens the circuit tosignal light 108, extinguishing it, giving the visual indication thatburner 20 is not operating.

When switch 104 engages cold terminal 103, operating coil 99 of powerrelay 98 is energized to operate switches 100 and 101 and, asherein'oefore described, energize solenoids 119, 120 and 121, valves 44,47 and 49 causes the air flowing through the burner to bypass adsorberchamber 25 and flow to the pipe 4S.

Similarly, if the incoming gas pressure entering through the gas line 22should fall below a minimum value (such as about 5.5 inches or" water)gas switch 28 opens shutting ott' the power to gas solenoid valves 29and 30. Thus, the gas supply to the burner is shut off and, with the fanstill operating, the burner will rapidly cool to operate inlet sensor 77which, as above described, causes lamp 10S to become extinguished givingthe visual indication the burner is not operating and the air flowingthrough the burner is directed past the adsorber chamber 25 to pipe 45.

1f the flashback sensor 76 senses an overly heated condition (forexample, above 800 F.) which could be caused by poor combustion orhashing back of ame into the air-gas mixing line 36, this switch willopen also shutting ot the power to gas solenoid valves 29 and 30. Again,this shuts oli the gas supply to the burner and, as above described, thevisual indication is obtained and the air passing through the burner isexhausted.

1f for any reason the inlet sensor thermostat '77 senses a burnertemperature at the inlet below a predetermined value (for example, belowabout 700 F.) switch 104 9 of the inlet sensor would move to the coldterminal 193 so, as above described, the products of combustion whichnow may be faulty would pass directly to the purge outlet 45.

The above description of the apparatus and its operation is of thesystem as a whole. This system is claimed specifically in the copendingapplication of lames W. Lannert et al. Serial No. 213,398, tiled luly30, 1962, and assigned to a common assignee.

The adsorber portion of the apparatus including the pipes and conduitsand valves and the operating structures therefor are claimedspecifically in the copending application of Joshua R. C. Brown et al.Serial No. 213,520, tiled July 30, 1962, and assigned to a commonassignee.

A preferred catalytic burner and assembly of catalytic burner andcondenser are disclosed in FIGURES 3-13 inclusive. The inventions ofthese preferred structures are claimed specifically herein.

A side elevation of the preferred catalytic burner 1311 and preferredcondenser 131 assembly and certain assoelated structure is shown inFIGURE 3. When used in the system of FIGURES l and 2, the preferredburner 130 is assembled into the system in the same manner as the burner2b illustrated in FIGURE 1. Similarly, the condenser 131 is assembledlike the condenser 23 of FlG- URE 1 and both the preferred burner andpreierred condenser operate in the manner previously described as toburner Ztl and condenser 23.

Burner 1351 comprises an enclosing generally rectangular frame 132 ofboit-like construction closed by top closure member 133 and bottomclosure member 134i. These closure members are the preferred forms ofthe closure members 63 and 67, respectively, of the irst embodimentshown in FGURE l.

The specific structure of each closure member 133 and 131i issubstantially identical. As shown in FGURES 12 and 13, the top closuremember 133 is made up of a flat metal plate 135 and a metal plate 136provided with a serpentine passage 136 extending back and forthlengthwise across the width of the plate to provide a passage for acoolant such as cooling water. The entrance to the top closure member133 is provided with a short pipe 137 to which is attached a iitting138, see FIGURE 3. The exit from the serpentine passage 136' is providedwith a pipe 139 to which is attached a iitting 140.

One side of the frame 132 has attached thereto adjacent the top an inletmanifold 141 for the gaseous fuel and air mixture. This inlet manifold141 is provided with a bushing 142 to which is attached the air-gas line36 as illustrated in FGURE 1. This inlet manifold and bushing alsocontains the flashback sensor 76 having its feeler end extending towithin the frame 132 as illustrated in FGURE 3.

rl`he opposite side of the frame 132 adjacent the bottom thereof isprovided with an outlet manifold 143. EX- tending downwardly from theoutlet manifold is the condenser 131 through which pass the products ofcombustion from the burner 131). The condenser 131 is cooled by wateriiowing through the back and forth passes of water tubes 14d whichfunction similarly to the water tubes 60 of FGURE l. The bottom watertubes 144 are connected by means of a T to an extending inlet pipe1li-d. The topmost section of water tubes 144 is connected to an outletiitting 146 and an outlet pipe 147. The condenser 131 is also providedwith reinforcing tins 118, and with a drain outlet 154 which connects toa rap such as 73 of FGURE 1.

The bottom closure member 134i, which is like the top closure 133 shownin detail in FGURES 12 and 13, is also provided with an inlet tting 149at one side and an outlet fitting 151B at the other side.

When connected into the entire system in the manner illustrated by theburner 26 and condenser 23 of FIG- URE 1 inlet iitting 133 is connectedby a pipe (not shown) to the outlet fitting 14d olf the condenser 131.The outlet tltting 14? of the top closure member 133 may be connected bya pipe similar to pipe 64 (FIGURE 1) to air heater d5. The outletthereof is connected by a pipe similar to pipe 66 (FIGURE l) to theinlet fitting 149 of the bottom mtmber 13d. The outlet fitting 151) ofthe bottom member 134 is connected to one end of a water pipe 11 throughwhich water flows in the direction indicated by the arrow 152. The endof the pipe 151 opposite the tting 15d is itself provided with a litting153 which is adapted to be connected to an outlet pipe (not shown) whichconnects `to a drain similar to the drain pipe 711. The water pipe 151is adapted to contain the water control thermostat 72 illustrateddiagrammaticaily in EGURES 1 and 2. Thus, with this arrangement coolingwater flows into the condenser through pipe 11E-5, through cooling pipes144 in the condenser, through the outlet 146 from the condenser, intothe inlet 13S and the top closure member 133, through the passages 136'in this top member to the outlet 149, from the outlet 149 to an airheater such as air heater 65 (FGURE l), to the bottom inlet 149, throughthe cooling passages in the bottom closure member, 134-, from the outlet15d in the bottom closure member 134 through the pipe 151 and from theFitting 153 to the drain.

One side of the frame 132 adjacent the bottom thereof is provided with aspark plug 75. The opposite side of the frame near the bottom thereof isprovided with the second spark plug in about the same relative positionto the frame as the spark plug 75 illustrated in FIG- URE 3. The burner1311 is provided with mounting brackets 155 and with a pair of openingson each side sealed by pipe plugs 156.

The bottom of the condenser 131 is provided with an outlet bushing 157for the products of combustion that is adapted to be connected to a pipeoutlet similar to the pipe 2d of FlGURE l.

For clarity of illustration, FIGURE 4 is a plan View of the burner 13)partially broken away and with the top closure member 133 removed inorder to show the support for the bed 153 (FGURE 9) of iinely dividedcatalyst. This support comprises a ilat foraminous member 159, hereshown as a wire screen, of 10 by 10 mesh, .025 inch diameter lnconelwire. The screen 159 is shown in detail in FGURES l0 and 11 and as shownis provided with spaced parallel embossments 16) eX- tending lengthwiseof the screen 159 and extending in cross section slightly more thanThese spaced parallel embossments serve to strengthen the screen.

As shown in enlarged detail in FlGURE 9 and in FGURE 6, the edges of thescreen 159 are held between upper and lower spaced flanges 161 and 162mounted on .the inner surface of the frame 132. The screen 159 is notclamped by the flanges 161 and 162 but is free to move relative theretoparticularly under the expansion and contraction due to heating andcooling.

The bed 15S of catalyst is illustrated only fragmentarily in FIGURE 9for illustrative purposes only.

The bed 158 of catalyst and the supporting screen 159 are supported on aplurality of transverse rods 163 here shown as 11 and including a centerrod 164. As can be seen in FIGURE 4, the rods extend across the shorterwidth of the frame 1?-2. Each of the rods 163 except for the center rod1nd is suported loosely by means of a plurality or' brackets 165fastened at the side of the frame 132 on the angle 16d whose top partforms the supporting ange 162. As is shown in FIGURE 7, the bottom 167of each bracket 165 is substantially horizontal so that the rods 163 canmove relative to the bracket under the forces of expansion andcontraction. At the same time each rod 163 and 164 can also expand andcontract longitudinally because of the free ends as illustrated in FIG-URE 9. As is shown in FIGURES 4 and 6. the brackets 16S on either sideof the center rod 164 face away from this center rod and to the oppositeside of the burner. As

is illustrated in Fl URE S, the center rod 164- is not mounted in thismanner but is mounted at the ends by a pair of partially encirclingbrackets 3.63 which limit lateral movement of the rods but still permitthe usual longitudinal movement under the forces of expansion andcontraction.

As illustrated in FIGURE 9, the screen i@ is loosely tied to the rods163 and Lied by means of loose wire ties M9. Also, as illustrated inFGURE 9, the outlet manifold 143 is provided with a plurality ofopenings 70 through which products of combustion from the space 171beneath the catalyst bed 15B may tlow to the condenser 131. Also locatedin this space l'il is a pair of openings 172 of which one is illustratedin GURE 9 for retaining the spark plugs '75.

The products of combustion from the bottom space 1.7i flow through aseries of horizontally aligned openings i735 in the trame 132 beneaththe screen 159 and bed 5153. The relationship of these openings d173 isshown in phantom in FlGURE 6.

The air-gas mixture is conveyed from the inlet manifold 141 into theupper space .lr/'l in the burner above the catalyst bed l5?) by aplurality of horizontally aligned openings 175 that are locatedimmediately above this bed. To aid in distributing the airgas mixtureuniformly over the catalyst bed, there may be a plurality of bailles 178fastened to top closure member i333, as shown in FIGURE 3.

As is shown in FIGURES 5 and 9, the frame 132 is provided with upper andlower reinforced edge ilanges 176 and 177 to which are bolted the edgesof the top and bottom closure members 133 and i3d.

As is disclosed in the above-mentioned copending Patents 3,102,778 and3,102,780, the catalyst for the bed SS is a well known and commerciallyavailable material. The typical catalysts are chrome-alumina and plat-linum-alumina and are supplied primarily to the petroleum industry forhydrocarbon modification.

In operating the system described herein, the relative amounts of airand gas are regulated so as to produce approximately from 2-l0% oxygen,preferably, in the combustion products. During the operation of thesystem combustion is initiated in the lower space 171 by means of thespark plugs 75. However, burning rapidly moves upwardly through thescreen SL59 to take place in the catalyst bed S. lf burning moves out ofthe catalyst bed it is detected by the llashback sensor 76 in the mannerpreviously described. A typical catalyst is a chromealumina catalystcontaining about chromic oxide and is in the form of about one-eighthinch extruded pellets. The burner is preferably operated at atemperature of about 1600 F. maximum and the temperature within theburner is kept beneath about 2000" F. primarily by the cooling water, aspreviously described, in order to prevent the production of substantialamounts of the oxides of nitrogen. The minimum temperature at the centerof the catalyst bed must be about 1200" F. for complete combustion.

In operating the system it sometimes occurs that the products ofcombustion are in the desired proportions of ox gen, carbon dioxide andinert gases for preserving the food products. When this occurs thecombustion products are not passed through the adsorber bed 26 but arepassed directly into the storage chamber 27 in the manner specitiedabove. ln the usual preserving of food products the storage chamber 27is chilled to between about 29-55" F. However, as the apparatus forchilling the chamber 27 forms no part of the present invention it is notillustrated.

The significance of inlet sensor 77 has already been discussed withregard to the control of valves 44, 47 and 49 to purge the products ofcombustion to the atmosphere during improper catalytic combustion withinburner 20. It should be emphasized that inlet sensor 77 providescomplete and automatic sensing of any faulty, low-temperature operationof the burner. The location of the inlet sensor 77 just above thecatalytic bed is significant. At this location, as long as correct andcomplete catalytic combustion is taking place within the burner, thetemperature will remain above a certain determinable level. However, ifthe catalytic combustion should be improper or incomplete, thetemperature at that location will drop substantially, and the set pointof the inlet sensor is established to react to that temperature drop.Thus, one thermostat, exemplied here in inlet sensor 77, can by itslocation and operational conditions, provide automatic control of theapparatus of the present invention to detect an improperly burningcatalytic burner.

Having described my invention as related to the embodiments shown in theaccompanying drawings, it is my intention that the invention be notlimited by any of the details of description, unless otherwisespecified, but rather be construed broadly within its spirit and scopeas set out in the accompanying claims.

l claim:

l. A generator comprising: an enclosing frame; a catalyst bed means insaid frame for the catalytic combustion of hydrocarbon fuel in said bed,said frame having a iirst chamber on one side ot said bed and a secondcharnber on the opposite side of said bed; means for absorbing heatenergy from said bed comprising first heat energy absorbing meansadjacent said iirst chamber and second heat energy absorbing meansadjacent said second chamber, both said heat energy absorbing meansthereby cooling said catalytic combustion; and means for supporting bothsaid heat energy absorbing means on said frame.

2. In an apparatus for generating heat energy and a combustion productsatmosphere suitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetableproducts by the catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improvedgenerator comprising: an enclosing frame; irst and second heat absorbingclosure members; means for supporting said closure members on saidframe; support means positioned within said frame and between saidclosure members for supporting a granular catalyst bed; means includingsaid closure members, said enclosing trarne and said support means fordefining iirst and second chambers on opposite sides of said bed betweenthe bed and said closure members and communicating with said bed; airsupply means for supplying air to said generator for supportingcombustion therein; an air heater in said air supply means; means forforming a first iluid passage in said first closure member; means forforming a second uid passage in said second closure member; means forforming a fluid passage in said air heater; and means for passing heatexchange fluid through one of said first and second passages, thenthrough said air heater passage, and then through the other of saidfirst and second passages for simultaneously cooling said chambers andthus said bed and heating said air.

3. ln an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; rst and second closure members; meansfor supporting said closure members on said frame; support meanspositioned within said frame and between said closure members forsupporting a granular catalyst bed; means for forming a rst coolantpassage in said first closure member; means for forming a second coolantpassage in said second closure member; an outlet conduit for saidcombustion products; means for forming a third coolant passage in saidoutlet conduit; and means for connecting said coolant passages in seriesfor ow of a coolant therethrough.

4. The generator of claim 3 wherein said means for connecting saidcoolant passages in series directs coolant flow through said thirdpassage prior to How through the other two passages.

5. ln an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; first and second closure members; meansfor supporting said closure members on said frame; support meanspositioned within said frame and between said closure members forsupporting a granular catalyst bed; means for supplying air to saidgenerator for supporting combustion therein; an air heater in said airsupply means; means for forming a first tiuid passage in said firstclosure member; means for forming a second fluid passage in said secondclosure member; means for forming a fluid passage in said air heater;means for forming an outlet conduit for said combustion products; meansfor forming a third fluid passage in said outlet conduit; and means forconnecting said fluid passages in series for ow of a heat exchange fluidthrough said third passage, then said rst passage, then said air heaterpassage and then said second passage.

6. The generator of claim 3 wherein said support means comprises a atforaminous member and mounting means therefor comprising a plurality ofspaced elongate members arranged in said frame on either side of thecenter of said dat member and means for loosely retaining said elongatemembers for movement laterally vof their lengths toward and away fromsaid center.

7. In an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; first and second closure members; meansfor supporting said closure members on said frame; support meanspositioned Within said frame and between said closure members forsupporting a granular catalyst bed; means including said support means,said closure members and said frame for defining irst and secondchambers on opposite sides of and communicating with said bed; means forsupplying gaseous fuel and air to one of said chambers for passage intosaid bed; means positioned downstream of said bed for initiatingcombustion of said fuel to provide burning within said bed; an outletconduit for said combustion products from the other of said chambers;means for forming a rst uid passage in said lirst closure member; meansfor forming a second uid passage in said second closure member; meansfor forming a third Huid passage in said outlet conduit; and means forconnecting said uid passages in series for flow of a heat exchange fluidthrough said third passage, then said first passage and then said secondpassage.

S. In an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; first and second closure members; meansfor supporting said closure members on said frame; support meanspositioned within said frame and between said closure members forsupporting a granular catalyst bed; means including said closuremembers, said support means and said frame for defining first and secondchambers on opposite sides of and communicating with said bed; means forsupplying gaseous fuel to one of said chambers; means for supplying airto said one chamber for supporting combustion of said fuel in said bed;an air heater in said air supply means; means positioned downstream ofsaid bed for initiating combustion of said fuel to provide burningwithin said bed; an outlet conduit for said combustion products fromsaid other chamber; means for forming a first fluid passage in saidiirst closure member; means for forming a second fluid passage in saidsecond closure member; means for forming a third fluid passage in saidoutlet conduit; means for forming a uid passage in said air heater; andmeans for connecting said uid passages in series for flow of a heatexchange fluid through said i4 third passage, then said first passage,then said air heater passage and then said second passage.

9. Apparatus for providing a controlled atmosphere suitable forpreservation of animal and vegetable products, comprisinff: catalyticburner means for generating an atmosphere comprising oxygen, carbondioxide and inert gases by the burning of a fuel in the presence of air;means for forming an exit conduit from said burner for said atmosphere;means for cooling said exit conduit to condense moisture from saidatmosphere including passage means on said exit conduit for a coolingmedium; means for cooling said burner means to a temperature less thanthe normal burning temperature therein including passage means on saidburner means for a cooling medium; and means for supplying air andgaseous fuel to said burner means.

10. ln an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; support means within said frame forsupporting a granular catalyst bed therein; and mounting means forloosely retaining said support means relative to said enclosing framefor substantially free movement of said support means toward and awayfrom said enclosing frame, said support means comA prising a datforaminous member, and said mounting means comprising spaced rigidmembers within said frame and means for loosely connecting said rigidmembers to said foraminous member for movement laterally andlongitudinally relative thereto.

11. In an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; support means within said frame forsupporting a granular catalyst bed therein; and mounting means forloosely retaining said support means relative to said enclosing framefor substantially free movement of said support means toward and awayfrom said enclosing frame, said support means comprising a flatforaminous member movable relative to said frame, and said mountingmeans comprising a plurality of spaced elongate members, means forloosely connecting said elongate members to said foraminous member andmeans holding said elongate members in said frame on either side of thecenter of said foraminous member for movement longitudinally and formovement substantially freely toward and away from said center.

12. The generator of claim 1t) wherein said mounting means also includesspaced flange means connected to said enclosing frame for looselyengaging said foraminous member, and bracket means connected to saidange means for engaging said rigid members.

13. In an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame; support means in said frame forsupporting a granular catalyst bed therein comprising a flat fo-raminousmember; and mounting means for loosely retaining said support meansrelative to said enclosing frame for substantially free movement of saidsupport means toward and away from said enclosing frame, said mountingmeans comprising rigid members, means loosely connecting said rigidmembers to said -foraminous member for movement relative thereto,

spaced ange means connected to said enclosing frame for loosely engagingsaid foraminous member, and bracket means connected to said flange meansfor engaging said rigid members.

14. In an apparatus for generating la combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame having side Walls; spaced first andsecond closure members on said frame; support means in said framebetween said closure members for supporting a granular catalyst bed; andmounting means for loosely retaining said support means for movementtoward and away from said enclosing frame, said mounting meanscomprising spaced flange means connected to said side walls and bracketmeans connected to said ange means for loosely supporting said supportmeans for movement toward and away from said frame.

i5. In an apparatus for generating a combustion products atmospheresuitable for preserving or conditioning animal and vegetable products bythe catalytic combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, an improved generatorcomprising: an enclosing frame having side walls; spaced first andsecond closure members on said frame; support means in said framebetween said closure members for supporting a granular catalyst bed,said support means comprising a lat foraminous member; and mountingmeans in said frame for loosely retaining said support means formovement toward and away from said enclosing frame, said mounting meanscomprising rigid members, means for loosely connecting said rigidmembers to said foraminous member for movement relative thereto, spacedange means connected to said side walls for loosely engaging saidforaminous member, and bracket means connected to said ange means forloosely engaging said rigid members, said bracket means therebysupporting said bed with the foraminous member and rigid members movablerelative to each other and to said frame.

16. The generator of claim 15 wherein said rigid members comprise aplurality of spaced elongate members having end portions engaged by saidbracket means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,438,467 3/48Tyson et al. 2,607,663 8/52 Perry et al. 23-288 2,750,266 6/56 Robertset al. 23-288 2,834,657 5/58 Houdry. 2,943,921 7/60 King. 23-2883,033,658 5/62 Gross et al 23-288 3,037,554 6/62 Risse 158-140 3,063,49311/62 Weiss. 3,102,778 9/63 Bedrosian et al 21-58 FOREGN PATENTS1,136,829 1/57 France.

MORRIS O. WOLK, Primary Examiner.

1. A GENERATOR COMPRISING: AN ENCLOSING FRAME; A CATALYST BED MEANS INSAID FRAME FOR THE CATALYTIC COMBUSTION OF HYDROCARBON FUEL IN SAID BED,SAID FRAME HAVING A FIRST CHAMBER ON ONE SIDE OF SAID BED AND A SECONDCHAMBER ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID BED; MEANS FOR ABSORBING HEATENERGY FROM SAID BED COMPRISING FIRST HEAT ENERGY ABSORBING MEANSADJACENT SAID FIRST CHAMBER AND SECOND HEAT ENERGY ABSORBING MEANSADJACENT SAID SECOND CHAMBER, BOTH SAID HEAT ENERGY ABSORBING MEANSTHEREBY COOLING SAID CATALYTIC COMBUSTION; AND MEANS FOR SUPPORTING BOTHSAID HEAT ENERGY ABSORBING MEANS ON SAID FRAME.